


a scratch

by stellarfluid (dykeabetic)



Series: My Zombies, Make! Pieces [1]
Category: Zombies Run!
Genre: Bisexual Runner Five, Bisexual Sam Yao, M/M, Non-Binary Runner Five, more of like.. my five gets hurt, my five is agender; uses they/them pronouns; considers self a mlm, not necessarily graphic description of violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-26
Updated: 2020-07-26
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:02:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25520281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dykeabetic/pseuds/stellarfluid
Summary: No matter how many times something like this happened during runs, Sam was always terrified. The fear that he was about to lose another one of his runners always coursed through his veins, making him tremble as his heart beat so hard he could hear it.It was Runner Five this time. Or, was it more accurate to say it was Runner Five again?(My first submission for Zombies, Make!, a challenge organized by @puptart on tumblr!)
Relationships: Runner Five & Sam Yao, Runner Five/Sam Yao
Series: My Zombies, Make! Pieces [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1848844
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	a scratch

PROMPT:

* * *

No matter how many times something like this happened during runs, Sam was always terrified. The fear that he was about to lose another one of his runners always coursed through his veins, making him tremble as his heart beat so hard he could hear it. 

It was Runner Five this time. Or, was it more accurate to say it was Runner Five  _ again? _ Sam didn’t really have time to bother thinking about it. Cain was on a supply run to pick up insulin and other medical supplies from a pharmacy a bit of a ways from Able, had been off his cameras for a while, and while the radio was still going strong, it still worried Sam that he couldn’t see Cain, or what may be around them. 

Despite being usually incredibly quiet on runs — too focused and sometimes even too frightened to speak most of the time — Cain was doing an incredibly good job and keeping Sam updated on their status. They would tell him if they saw any zoms, or they were changing direction or speeding up, or when they passed significant landmarks so Sam had a good idea of where exactly they were. 

Sam knew when they had entered the pharmacy. He knew when they found what they had gone for. They heard the rustling of Cain shoving supplies into their backpack, and the soft  _ woosh!  _ of them slinging it over their shoulder. 

Then, he heard them mutter:  _ “Oh, shit.” _

“What?” Sam asked immediately, jolting and looking at the camera feeds as if they would tell him anything. “What’s the matter?”

“Um.” Cain’s voice was quieter than usual, not even managing to reach above a whisper. “I think… I think I accidentally trapped myself in here. Um, with some zoms.”

“WHAT?!”

“I didn’t see or hear them when I came in,” Cain said, their voice sounding remarkably calm, even though Sam knew them well enough to know that they didn’t feel that way. “But… I think they know I’m here.”

Of COURSE. Of course this was happening. Just their luck, right? That being said, it didn’t take long before Sam devolved into a state of panic.

“ _ What are you going to do?!”  _ he asked in a panicked whisper, almost as if raising his own voice would draw the zoms closer. “I can’t see you— I can’t help—“

He heard them take a deep breath. “I’m just— I’m gonna make a run for it, I guess.”

“Oh, God,” Sam groaned. “Just… God, be careful? Please?” He hated this.

Cain breathed in a way that sounded like they were trying to say “yeah”, before falling relatively silent again. Sam could hear them breathing as they tried to make their way, along with the faint sound of zombies in the background. 

“I made it to the exit. I think— SHIT.”

_ “WHAT?!” _

“I— goddamn it, hold on, I got it, it’s fine—“ but by the sound of their voice, it wasn’t fine. They didn’t have the calm sound to their voice that Sam was used to. It trembled and cracked, reflecting Cain’s own overwhelming panic.

“What’s happening?!”

“I— the door is jammed. And they’re— they’re getting close, but it’s fine. I—  _ agh!”  _ Sam heard them drive their shoulder into the door then gasp, the sound of their feet shuffling. “I’m out, I’m—“

And then they screamed.

* * *

Cain was not bitten. Cain was not going to die. Cain was not bitten. Cain was not going to die.

It was a couple of days later now, and Cain was just now being let out of quarantine after that terrifying experience of a run they had. They had not been bitten, but scratched— a zom had tried to grab them as they were recovering from busting the door open, and had dragged its long, grangly nails across the side of their neck. Maxine had thoroughly cleaned out the nasty-looking cuts that remained, but there was still a risk of infection, and Cain was put away until they could say with relative confidence that they weren’t infected.

Sam made his way to the infirmary and found Cain sitting there, and Maxine placing  _ fabric plasters _ over the now-scars on their neck. Cain’s head was tilted away from the door, but they could still see the incredulous look Sam was giving them.

“The scars look bad,” they said simply. “I didn’t want anyone to have to look at them.”

“Is Sam here?” Maxine asked. Cain hummed, so Maxine said, “They’re fine. They’re not showing any symptoms.

She sighed as she drew back, looking at Cain’s neck to make sure everything was covered correctly. 

“It was a close one, though,” she said, more directed towards Cain than Sam. “I doubt you’ll be as lucky next time.”

Cain chuckled. “I hope there won’t be a next time,” they said. 

Maxine stood up, and turned to Sam. “I’ll give you two some alone time,” she said, and while her face remained serious, her voice had a hint of laughter in it. “Ten minutes. Cain’s not done here yet.” 

And then she exited the tent, leaving Sam to stare at Cain, who was — in fact — fine.

“I’m sorry I scared you,” they said.

And that’s when the waterworks started.

“No. No! I’m just happy you’re— oh my God,” and then Sam collapsed next to Cain’s arms and began sobbing into their shoulder.

The ten minutes passed that way: Sam’s face pressed against Cain, who ran their hand gently up and down his back.

“I love you,” Cain whispered before Maxine came in.

Sam’s Runner Five was alive, and they were fine.

“I love you, too,” Sam replied.

**Author's Note:**

> i forgot to leave a note haha i meant to but got distracted 
> 
> anyway hi! im getting back into zombies, run now after a bit of a hyperfixation hiatus or whatever, and its very good to be back. more writing will be coming soon cuz of zombies make, so be expecting that! shout out again to puptart for organizing everything!


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